Opinions about tenor guitars?

strumsilly

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I know they aren't ukuleles, but they do have 4 strings and can be tuned in 4ths like a uke. built a bit stronger and made for steel strings, which for some reason I think would be kinda cool. I just can't get around my guitar's neck anymore after playin a uke. these might just be the ticket. Martin, Gibson, Vega,Harmony,OS. etc made bunches of them. Some of the Gibson archtops are stunning. anyone have any experience? thinking of selling my vintage Gibson guitar and buying one.
 
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It is really cool.

If you don't want to throw a fortune at getting vintage, there are a few modern ones you can buy that are great quality.

I've got an Ozark tenor guitar, and it is fantastic.
Very open, loud sound from its solid spruce top, fantastic design and high quality electronics.

I have it tuned like a baritone uke
 
I just bought a Blueridge guitar and love it. It is a 6 string BG-40 and it sounds great. If their tenor sounds half as good, I would jump all over it. Great instruments for the money.
 
I know they aren't ukuleles, but they do have 4 strings and can be tuned in 4ths like a uke. built a bit stronger and made for steel strings, which for some reason I think would be kinda cool.

The same is also true for the Tenor Banjo - I was given one years ago but never paid it much attention, however after being introduced to the Wonderful World of the Uke, I've re-tuned it as a Baritone Uke & I enjoy it a lot more than I ever thought that I would!
 
If you drop the first string to be the same note as #4 (drop from A to G or E to D. Then you are really in Taropatch slack key...or standard banjo tune.
 
I've got an Ozark tenor guitar, and it is fantastic.
Very open, loud sound from its solid spruce top, fantastic design and high quality electronics.

I have it tuned like a baritone uke

I'm curious about how a tenor guitar tuned as a baritone uke would differ from a baritone uke. I guess one difference would be that a tenor guitar would use steel strings? Have you had a chance to compare them? If so, are tenor guitars the same scale as baritone ukes? How would you describe similarities/differences in sound? Also, I think I read somewhere that tenor guitars are typically tuned like tenor banjoes, I believe something like CGDA? Did you need to get different strings to tune it GDBE? I'm considering buying a tenor guitar but haven't had the chance to play one, so any info you could give me would be great. Thanks!
 
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From what I understand, tenor guitars are also often tuned the same way as baritone ukes, they call it Chicago tuning. Some of the main differences besides the steel strings are that the neck is thinner and slightly longer (more like a banjo neck), and that the construction of the instrument is a bit different and makes those low notes rounder than on a bari uke.

I like the Baritone tuning, it makes more sense for certain songs than GCEA because less fingers are involved for certain chords thus more ornaments possible with the available ones. I also like the fact that they allow you to make lower notes than the other uke sizes. So for me the baritone definitely has a purpose and unique qualities that other uke sizes don't have. But somehow it feels to me that baritones lack some of the physical volume/shape/size needed to make those bassier notes really blossom acoustically, like there's a chunk of low frequencies missing from how my ears wish they would resonate.

Most tenor guitars I've heard don't have that problem - or rather, they fit my ears' craving for low frequencies in lower notes better. Plus they have the brightness of steel strings, which I enjoy as well, but without the additional 2 strings of "regular" guitars or their enormous size. Therefore I think I will probably get a tenor guitar... one day... A vintage one from Antebellum would be nice, if I could ever afford it :) ( :daydreaming: )

That said, I have never played one so my two cents are purely from a listener's point of view :)
 
Here's a tenor guitar with Chicago tuning and fluocarbonate strings, so basically with same strings and tuning as a baritone uke. For comparison.

 
I have several tenor guitars including Harmony, Supertone, and Kay. Nice instruments but neck/nut width is a real issue. In many cases, the nut is almost 1/2" narrower than my baritones. I really like the wider necks and fret spacing that my Baritones afford.

I took upon myself to learn chords in the traditional fifths tuning CGDA. Not hard but it has a distinct celtic quality.

For much more info on Tenor Guitars, check out the Tenor Guitar Registry:

http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/tenorguitarregistry/

A Yahoo Group that is essentially a clearinghouse for all things Tenor Guitar related. And for a look at how Tenors fit into a Jazz world, visit the Tenor Guitar Madness, a Jazz trio out of Syracuse, NY that is built around Gibson Tenors and Bass. Nice work:

http://www.myspace.com/tenorguitarmadness

Mike
 
First, what cowboy said.

Unless you're going to play your 4-string guitar like an open tuned banjo and barre up and down the neck, you won't like the narrow neck on a vintage Tenor.

I'm not sure if the width is the same on new models like the Blueridge. It would be worth checking.

As far as I know, we are the only ones making a Tenor Guitar for classical strings. Like most Tenors, it has a 23" scale. It also has neck width similar to a Baritone Ukulele. We just added a Plectrum Guitar (650 mm scale - same body) that gives a few more stringing options.

Both work for "Chicago Tuning" (Tenor Guitar slang for Linear G), and in that tuning both pretty much blow away any Baritone Ukulele ever made.
 
First, what cowboy said.

Unless you're going to play your 4-string guitar like an open tuned banjo and barre up and down the neck, you won't like the narrow neck on a vintage Tenor.

I'm not sure if the width is the same on new models like the Blueridge. It would be worth checking.
thanks for all the info, from what I could glean from the tenor guitar registry, The Blueridge has a slightly wider neck than the vintage tenors[1 1/4 nut, 1 " string spacing {outside}] but slightly narrower than the ukulele, most of mine are about 1 3/8 at nut and 1 1/8 spacing. this has put me off buying a vintage, that plus you never really know how it's going to play till you get it. The southcoast looks really nice, but out of my pricerange for now. most players seem to think the Blueridge is a good value. maybe I can find a used one.
 
Dirk, I'm interested in buying a Blueridge BR-40T. What Southcoast "Chicago tuning" strings would you recommend for this instrument (22-7/8 scale length)? Thanks!
 
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Some nice youtube videos featuring tenor guitars:







 
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